JFK is president and Easy Rawlins has a job with the Los Angeles Board of Education. He is off the street, off the whisky, into a respectable job supervising the custodial staff at Sojourner Truth Junior High in Watts. Then Mrs. Idabell Turner, a pretty young teacher shows up very early for work one morning -- and before he knows what's happening, Easy is making love to her on her desk, then agreeing to take care of her nasty little dog Pharaoh, which Idabell claims her husband wants to kill. Before the day is over Idabell is gone, leaving Easy with her dog, and the handsomest corpse Easy has ever seen is found in the school garden. That night the corpse's twin brother turns up dead as well. The police believe that Easy is involved with the murders. The head of the school wants to fire him.